Mixer for explosive materials



Jan. 29, 1963 L. YABLoNsKl ETAL 3,075,746

MIXER FOR EXPLOSIVE MATERIALS Filed July 10, 1958 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS LEON YABLoNsKl JAMES w. sTRousE ATTORNEYS IVI?.

Jam 29, 1963 L. YABLoNsKl Erm. 3,075,746

MIXER FOR ExPLosIvE n/mTERIALs Filed July 1o, 1958 4 sheets-sheet 2 \\Tir INVENTORS LEON YABLONSKI JAMES W, STROUSE M AMM/#WCM ATTORNEYS Jm 29, 1963 YABLoNsKl ETAL 3,075,746

MIXER Foa ExPLosIvE MATERIALS Filed July 10, 1958 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTORS LEON YABLONSKI JAMES W. STROUSE 64 82 FIG. 3 ATTORNEYS Im 29, 1963 L. YABLNsKl ETAL 3,075,746

MIXER FOR ExPLosIvE MATERIALS Filed July 10, 1958 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTORS LEON YABLONSKI JAMES W. STROUSE Y 3 rotation about the axis a with which bowl B is concentric.

It is also desirable to rotate shafts 48 `and 5o about their own axes and this is very practically accomplished in the instant design by providing motion transmission means between the carrier C and the shafts 4S and Sit so that no separate drive need be provided. The problem of connection of a separate drive shaft to revolve shafts 4S and 5G from a motor or the like would clearly be a very ditiioult one in view of the orbital rotation of the shafts. Fixed on the lower end of shaft 3@ and supported by shouldered portion Stirb thereof is an internal ring gear 55 having teeth 55a in mesh with a pinion 55 which is rotatably journaled on the upper end of shaft d8 on a roller bearing 57.

The :gear 56 is in mesh with a pinion SS which is keyed on shaftril and accordingly, orbital rotation of shaft 4S and the gear 56, which it rotatably carries, causes the gear 56 to be driven bythe teeth 55a and thus drive shaft 50 through Lgear 53. A gear 59 keyed on shaft 50 and in mesh with -a gear 6i) keyed on shaft 4S drives the shaft 48 at half the speed of shaft 50 iand because there is a direct, synchronized driving relationship between shafts 4S and 59 the blades Si. and S2, which have intersecting paths of travel and rotate in opposite directions, never come into contact. It will be seen that spacers 61 are provided where required on shouldered portions of the shafts 48 and 5o to support the gears and bearings.

Various spouts 62 extending through the wall of the housing 28a may be provided as desired to permit materials to be fed into the bowl B and, if the mixing is to occur under pressure or in a vacuum, means will be provided for sealing oi the ysupply tubes or Ispouts 62. The

`bowl B is a jacketed bowl and has a jacket 63 provided dor its side wall 54 and a jacket 64 provided for its lower wall 53. It will be understood that a suitable thermally conductive duid will be circulated through the jackets 63 and 6d- -to maintain the temperature levels desired.

With the instant construction there need be no rotation of the bowl B and stationary ittings can be attached to the bowl B, once it is in position, lfor the supplying of and removal of the thermally conductive gas or liquid to the iacketed portions.

ln order to facilitate removal of the bowl B, once its contents have been thoroughly mixed, suitable double acting uid pressure cylinders 65 are provided within the side wall casings ill. The upper ends of the piston rods 66 of the cylinders o5 are secured to gusseted brackets 67 which have lift members or arms 6% at their lower ends, the upper ends of brackets 67 being secured in any acceptable manner to the piston rods d6 as with nuts 69. The bowls B mount brackets 76 with flanges 76a having spaced apart location openings 71 which are positioned to receive the locator pins 72 on lift arms 6d. At its top end the bowl B is provided with a peripheral flange 73, having ears 73st with openings 7d, for the reception of depending locator pins 75 provided in similar ears 75a on flange 7o which is formed on the lower end of housing H. The cylinders 65 may be actuated by an operator or could be automatically actuated by a timer gauging the mixing cycle.

Common, double acting, fluid pressure cylinders are used which havesolenoid valves operating tosupply and egress a fluid under pressure from the cylinders in the usual manner. Such cylinders may have bleed openings 65o and air supply connections 6519. The

Vcasingwalls l1 may be provided with guide members 77 receiving portions 67a of the brackets o7 and guiding brackets 67 in their reciprocatory travel.

lt is important that tie bowl B be protected from contaminants such as lubricants for the gears shown and also from any sparks or heated particles which, if they were to reach the mixture, would be very likely to explode it. Accordingly, the housing H is provided with Van internal ilange 7S snugly but rotatably receiving the lower end of the carrier C, which is reduced as at 79 to accommodate the dange. Further, a seal Sil is shown as provided between a llange portion 37a extendingly upwardly from gear 37 and the mounting llange Z6, and other seals S6 are provided throughout the mixing machine as needed. Specically, seals Sil are provided between member d5 and shaft 48, and between member 46 and shaft Si). Also a seal 80 is provided between carrier wall 79 and il-ange '7%. Seals S1 (FIGURE 3) are carried by the ilange 76, for instance, to keep the material to be mixed in the bowl.

ln considering fully the mode of operation of the mixing machine it should 'oe remembered that the machine will be on the order of seventeen feet in overall height and will mix explosive materials in an interchangeable bowl which may be on the order of four feet or more in diameter. Thus the bowl B, which has base plates 82 or the like, rnust be initially deposited by a suitable material handling truck or device and lift members 5S must be provided. lt twill be noted that the members 68, when in lowermost position, are below the flanges 70a sutilciently so that there is no interference from pins '71 when the bowl is moved into position below the housing H. When the lift brackets 55 are moved upwardly, upon the admittance of pressure fluid to the lower end of cylinders 65, pins 72 move up into the openings 71 in the brackets 7o on the bowl and the bowl B is lifted up into the position in which it is shown in solid lines in FlGURE l, the dependent locating pins 75 entering the openings 74 in the bowl flange 73.

With the bowl B now held in sealed relationship with the lower edge of housing H, by the cylinders 65, the motor 15 is energized to cause rotation of the carrier C and simultaneous orbital and axial rotation of the paddle or mixer shafts d and Si?. Because shaft 48 is olf center with respect to the axis a and center line or axis of the bowl B, no dead spot can occur under the blades 51 as would be the case if the shaft 4S were concentrically disposed 'within the bowl B. 'It is assumed that, with shaft 23 operating in a clockwise direction (see FGURE 4), the carrier C is driven about its axis in a clockwise direction also, and shafts d8 and 5i) are moved in clockwisely orbital paths. Clockwise orbital motion of gear 56, which is rotatable on shaft 4S, causes it to be counterclockwisely spun about its own axis and accordingly, causes it to revolve gear 5S in a clockwise direction about its axis. Shaft 48 is, however, moved counterclockwisely by the gear 59 while it is moving in a clockwise orbital path. lt should be apparent that virtually the entire volume of the mixer bowl B is swept by the blades 5l and 52, and no dead spots are created in the mixing movement in which globs of particular components will remain unmixed. When the mixing operation has been in progress for a sucient length of time at a carefully controlled temperature, the motor l5 is deenergized and iluid pressure is introduced to the upper end of cylinders 65 to lower lift arms 68, and consequently the bowl B, to the position in which it is shown in diagrammatic lines in FIGURE l. It can then be removed by a suitable materials handling unit and a new bowl B substituted.

The blades 5l and 52 and speeds of rotation of shafts dd and Sit are so arranged that the blades 5l and 52 travel in intersecting paths but do not ever engage.

lt should be apparent that we have perfected a greatly improved mixing machine which will be very well suited to the purpose for which it was designed. It is to be understood that various equivalent changes may be made in the various elements of the invention without departing from the spirit of the subjoined claims so long as equivalent results are obtained.

We claim:

l. in a mixer; a bowl assembly; a mixing carrier including a side wall closure and an end wall closure with at least a pair of mixer shafts extending axially from said end wall closure into said bo'wl assembly; one of said shafts being generally centrally disposed in said bowl assembly but off center with respect to the center of the bowl assembly an-d another mixer shaft being disposed further radially outward than said first shaft; mixer members on said shafts; means for revolving said carrier about an axis operably centrally aligned with the center of said bowl assembly and thereby moving said shafts generally orbitally about the general center of the bowl assembly; motion transmission means within said closures of the mixing assembly for revolving said shafts about their axes, with the mixer member on the generally central shaft sweeping in its path of rotation across the center of the powl assembly and the mixer member on the other shaft sweeping in its path of rotation adjacent the Wall of the bowl assembly; and means in engagement between the carrier and bowl assembly for sealing the bowl assembly from contaminants.

2. In a mixer; a bowl; a carrier assembly including an end wall closure, with mixer shafts extending axially from said end wall closure into said bowl; one of said shafts being generally centrally disposed in said bowl but olf center with respect to the center of the bowl and anothermixer shaft being disposed further radially outward than said first shaft; mixer members on said shafts; means for revolving said assembly about an axis operably substantially centrally aligned with the center of said bowl and thereby moving said shafts generally orbitally about the general center of the bowl; motion transmission means for the carrier assembly isolated from the bowl by said end wall closure for revolving said shafts about their axes, with the mixer member on the generally central shaft sweeping in its path of rotation across the center of the bowl and the mixer member on the other shaft sweeping in its path of rotation adjacent the wall of the bowl; and means in engagement between said carrier assembly and bowl for sealing said bowl from contamination of its contents.

3. In a mixer; a bowl; a mixer carrier assembly including a side wall closure and end wall closures with mixer shafts extending axially from an end wall closure into said bowl; one of said shafts being generally centrally disposed in said bowl but olf center with respect to the center of the bowl and another mixer shaft being disposed further radially outward than said first shaft; mixer members `on said shafts; a fixed spindle generally centrally disposed relative to said assembly extending through the opposite end Wall closure to support said assembly for rotation; means engaged with the periphery of said assembly for revolving said assembly about an axis operably centrally aligned with the center of said bowl and thereby moving said shafts generally orbitally about the general center of the bowl; and motion transmission means within said closures of the mixing assembly mounted rotatably on said spindle and driven by rotation of said assembly for revolving said shafts about their axes, with the mixer member on the generally central shaft sweeping in its path of rotation across the center of the bowl and the mixer member `on the other shaft sweeping in its path of rotation adjacent the wall of the bowl.

References Cited in the lle of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 553,554 De Camp Jan. 28, 1896 902,465 Auchu Oct. 27, 1908 1,175,530 Kirchhoff Mar. 14, 1916 1,438,856 Read Dec. 12, 1922 1,612,281 Goetz Dec. 28, 1926 1,733,516 Rodin et al Oct. 29, 1929 1,913,189 Carbonel June 6, 1933 2,203,135 Farrington June 4, 1940 2,203,672 Chester lune 11, 1940 2,808,239 Reiien Oct. 1, 1957 FOREIGN PATENTS 15.074 Netherlands Sept. 15, 1926 

1. IN A MIXER; A BOWL ASSEMBLY; A MIXING CARRIER INCLUDING A SIDE WALL CLOSURE AND AN END WALL CLOSURE WITH AT LEAST A PAIR OF MIXER SHAFTS EXTENDING AXIALLY FROM SAID END WALL CLOSURE INTO SAID BOWL ASSEMBLY; ONE OF SAID SHAFTS BEING GENERALLY CENTRALLY DISPOSED IN SAID BOWL ASSEMBLY BUT OFF CENTER WITH RESPECT TO THE CENTER OF THE BOWL ASSEMBLY AND ANOTHER MIXER SHAFT BEING DISPOSED FURTHER RADIALLY OUTWARD THAN SAID FIRST SHAFT; MIXER MEMBERS ON SAID SHAFTS; MEANS FOR REVOLVING SAID CARRIER ABOUT AN AXIS OPERABLY CENTRALLY ALIGNED WITH THE CENTER OF SAID BOWL ASSEMBLY AND THEREBY MOVING SAID SHAFTS GENERALLY ORBITALLY ABOUT THE GENERAL CENTER OF THE BOWL ASSEMBLY; MOTION TRANSMISSION MEANS WITHIN SAID CLOSURES OF THE MIXING ASSEMBLY FOR REVOLVING SAID SHAFTS ABOUT THEIR AXES, WITH THE MIXER MEMBER ON THE GENERALLY CENTRAL SHAFT SWEEPING IN ITS PATH OF ROTATION ACROSS THE CENTER OF THE POWL ASSEMBLY AND THE MIXER MEMBER ON THE OTHER SHAFT SWEEPING IN ITS PATH OF ROTATION ADJACENT THE WALL OF THE BOWL ASSEMBLY; AND MEANS IN ENGAGEMENT BETWEEN THE CARRIER AND BOWL ASSEMBLY FOR SEALING THE BOWL ASSEMBLY FROM CONTAMINANTS. 